Aerobic Metabolism in Vibrio cholerae Is Required for Population Expansion during Infection

Abstract

Vibrio cholerae remains a challenge in the developing world and incidence of the disease it causes, cholera, is anticipated to increase with rising global temperatures and with emergent, highly infectious strains. At present, the underlying metabolic processes that support V. cholerae growth during infection are less well understood than specific virulence traits, such as production of a toxin or pilus. In this study, we determined that oxidative metabolism of host substrates such as mucin contribute significantly to V. cholerae population expansion in vivo . Identifying metabolic pathways critical for growth can provide avenues for controlling V. cholerae infection and the knowledge may be translatable to other pathogens of the gastrointestinal tract.